Leaders often complain that employees let them down, despite their undoubtedly admirable efforts at communicating their needs and requirements clearly.
Elizabeth Borelli of the Borelli Group takes on this seemingly straightforward topic in a recent post “Leadership Toolkit; how reframing your ask will measurably impact response and results.”
Turns out that there are three primary reasons that employees let their bosses down. (Out In the real world, I’m pretty sure you’ve experienced let down from your kids and your significant other, as well as acquaintances and friends.)
Here are the reasons people just don’t come through for you and what you can do to minimize the possibility it will happen:
You weren’t clear.
Ms. Borelli notes that most of us under-communicate. We all assume people know what’s in our heads (my thought) and share our reality (her thought). That is not necessarily the case, and I bet you can recall a recent example where your assumptions tripped you up. She says, “To avoid this, err on the side of over-communicating with respect to details. No one will faulty you for clarity, and even if they do, it’s probably worth the risk.”
They don’t trust you.
Ouch. Maybe they think they won’t be recognized for their good ideas or that you’re going to try to steal the credit. So you need to figure out—in advance—how to deal with that. One way to do that is to help people feel as though they’re genuinely members of a team and to understand why you need them to do what you’re asking. Ms. Borelli comments, “It’s impossible to underestimate the value people place on belonging.”
They haven’t bought in.
In my opinion, lack of buy-in is the most important of these three reasons. People who haven’t bought in will find a way—perhaps unconscious, perhaps not—to sabotage a project or a new way of doing things. As my old sales manager used to say, “Susan, you’ve got to figure out what’s in it for them, not what’s in it for you. Otherwise, they’ll never say yes and continue to drag their heels.”
Ms. Borelli amplifies this thought by saying, “When people understand the big picture and the part they’ll play, they can find purpose and motivation to stay on task … ” This is an interesting thought. My biggest concern, though, is that your people may get the big picture but not like it. That’s most likely a topic for another post.
How do you communicate with purpose and what have you found that works for you?
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